


The Argument Experimentation

by TruFaith



Category: Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-10-24 03:27:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17696777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TruFaith/pseuds/TruFaith
Summary: "Ya know," Chase says, "Gert and I have little spats like that all the time. It's healthy really. And kind of unavoidable in this cramped house. I'm sure you two will be fine.""Of course we'll be fine," Nico blurts out like it's obvious as she spins back around to continue fixing her makeup. "In 10 - 14 hours, depending on a few differing outside variables," she mutters to herself."Wait, wait, wait." Chase waves his hands in the air and takes a step into the room. "Are you, like, using math to try and figure out the scheduling and frequency of yours and Karolina's make up sex?"Nico pulls the eyeliner away from her eye and tilts her head in thought because… well he's not wrong, technically.Aka Nico realizes Karolina never stays mad about anything and decides to test this theory.





	The Argument Experimentation

**Author's Note:**

> Just trying my hand at a little Deanoru to see if I can get their voices right, don't mind me :)

"Nico! What the hell?"

 

Nico's head whips up from the book she'd been reading to find Karolina standing by the foot of the bed holding up Nico's clothes in both hands.

 

"Didn't I ask you to stop leaving your clothes all over the place? Just because we're on the street doesn't mean we have to live like animals."

 

"You're right, sorry," Nico says a little sheepishly.

 

"And I know you're probably used to having some maid show up every other day to clean up after you, but I'll be damned if that's gonna be me."

 

"The maid used to come every day actually." Karolina sends the clothes in her hands flying in Nico's direction, hitting her square in the chest. "Sorry, not the time for jokes. I'll clean up."

 

"Thank you," Karolina says with a clenched jaw and leaves the room.

 

Nico predicts 8-10 hours for this fight to run its course, so she's pleasantly surprised when 6 hours later Karolina comes back to the house and apologizes for overreacting.

 

*************************

 

Nico is fixing her makeup in the dresser mirror when Karolina starts to wake up on the bed behind her. She stretches and rolls around for a minute before Nico hears her let out an irritated sigh.

 

"What the hell, Nico?" Nico watches in the mirror as Karolina sits up and holds up a pillow covered in black eyeliner and mascara smudges.

 

"Whoops?" Nico says with a strained grin and a shrug as she turns around to face Karolina.

 

"'Whoops?' Really?? This is like the fourth time, Nico. I'm not scrubbing this shit out in the sink again."

 

"I'm sorry, I'll do it."

 

"Damn right you'll do it." Karolina says as she stands up and throws on some clothes, before stomping toward the door. "It's like living with a freaking toddler sometimes, I swear," she mutters under her breath as she leaves the room.

 

Nico is left staring at their open door, trying to figure out how much of the cold shoulder she's in for when Chase's face appears in the doorway in front of her. He stuffs his hands in his pockets and blows out a sigh.

 

 "Rough morning, huh?" Nico rolls her eyes and goes back to her mental calculations. Karolina definitely seemed more irritated about the makeup than the clothes, but Nico still figures they'll be fine by bedtime tonight.

 

"Ya know," Chase starts again, "Gert and I have little spats like that all the time. It's healthy really. And kind of unavoidable in this cramped house. I'm sure you two will be fine."

 

"Of course we'll be fine," Nico blurts out like it's obvious as she spins back around to continue fixing her makeup. "In 10 - 14 hours, depending on a few differing outside variables," she mutters to herself.  
 

"Wait, what?" Chase says. Apparently Nico needs to work on her muttering.

 

"Nothing."

 

"Wait, wait, wait." Chase waves his hands in the air and takes a step into the room. "Are you, like, using _math_ to try and figure out the scheduling and frequency of yours and Karolina's make up sex?"

 

Nico pulls the eyeliner away from her eye and tilts her head in thought because… well he's not _wrong_ , technically. Though it's not about the sex as much as it is Karolina's inability to stay mad about _anything_.

 

"That's… the most Asian thing I've ever heard." Nico glares at him over her shoulder as his eyes suddenly widen in panic. "Don't tell Gert I said that."

 

"Goodbye, Chase." Nico goes back to her makeup as he nods and leaves the room.

 

*************************

 

They're lying on their bed a few days later, Karolina fiddling with Nico's staff and Nico tracing the lines of Karolina's unoccupied hand.

 

"Do you ever think about how your Mom probably had an entire team of people doing research and experiments for months just to make this staff so she could feel like some sort of crazy badass?" Karolina says with a laugh. Nico knows it shouldn't sting, she's said worse about her own parents after all, but her mouth is responding before her brain can think.

 

"Well your mother made an entire bogus, cult-like religion just so she could feel like the second coming of Jesus Christ." Karolina pulls her hand out of Nico's and sits up, dropping the staff on the bed.

 

"It's not a cult." Nico sits up and twists to face her.

 

"Yeah, they never feel like cults when you're in them, that's how it works."

 

"And you know what, the whole thing may be 'bogus' to you, but the principles and beliefs that Gibborim are founded on are good and true and important to me."

 

"Karolina, the entire thing is based off the ramblings of a serial killer alien."

 

"An alien like me," Karolina says with a scoff.

 

" _Serial killer_ was the point I was trying to hit there."

 

"Whatever," Karolina throws her hands up as she stands and steps into her shoes. "I guess you're allowed to have your religion no matter what kind of ridiculous notions it might be based on. But _my_ entire belief system is just total bullshit, right?"

 

"Karolina," Nico starts, but she leaves and slams the door behind her before Nico can get another word out. "Shit," she says to the empty room instead. Nico climbs out of bed and throws on some clothes and shoes and follows Karolina out the door. She checks upstairs and then downstairs and finally comes across Chase eating cereal at the dining room table. He points toward the front door.

 

"Another experiment?" he asks with a smirk. As Nico passes by him she flips his cereal bowl up and into his lap. "Not cool, bro! Not cool!"

 

She finds Karolina outside, pacing back and forth occasionally kicking at rocks.

 

"Hey," Nico starts. Karolina says nothing so she continues with, "I'm sorry."

 

"Sorry about what you said or sorry that we're fighting? Again."

 

"Both," she responds with a shrug. "Look, I was a little hurt by what you said about my mom for some reason so I lashed out. Again," she sighs out. "And I'm sorry. Again."

 

"What's up with you lately?" Nico just stares blankly back at her so Karolina continues, "you think I haven't noticed you picking all these stupid fights? And I don't know if it's just because you're bored or maybe you got so used to fighting with your parents all the time or maybe you just want to break up but you're too stubborn to do it"--

 

\--"I got scared!" Nico blurts out and doesn't realize until after she's said it that it's actually true.  
 

"Scared of _what_ , Nico?" Karolina yells back.

 

"Of losing you!" Their voices echo around in the silence as they both stare at each other, letting the words settle in.

 

"You got scared to lose me and you thought the best thing to do about that was to pick fights with me?" Karolina raises her eyebrows in confusion.

 

"No, I just -- I'm not saying this right." Nico takes a deep breath and rubs her hand across her forehead as she tries to sort her racing thoughts. Karolina reaches out for her other hand and laces their fingers together.

 

"Hey," she says quietly, "It's just me, Nico." Karolina gives her hand a squeeze. 

 

"I just, I don’t think I even really realized why I was doing it until now." Nico sighs and closes her eyes for a moment. "I lost Amy. And then my parents. And then I tried to let Alex in and he had this terrible secret and I lost him too.  Everybody leaves."

 

"Nico," Karolina whispers with a sad smile.

 

"And I've never really done this before," she holds up their joined hands for a moment, "the relationship thing. But I have been told that I'm intense and a lot to take," Nico ducks her head and Karolina reaches out to run her hand through Nico's hair until she looks back at her again.

 

"I like your intensity" she smirks and Nico gives her a small smile in return.

 

"I guess I just got scared to screw it all up, because you're really important to me, and I just thought, 'if I'm gonna ruin it, it would hurt a lot less to do it now rather than later'." Karolina sighs and leans forward to press a light kiss to the worry lines across Nico's forehead.

 

"You're not the only one that gets scared, ya know." Nico wrinkles her eyebrows in confusion.

 

"But you're always so confident about everything. You kissed me first and said we should move in together first. You're way better at this than me." Karolina lets out a laugh and shrugs.

 

"I'm only confident because… I _have_ to be." Karolina pulls her hand away from Nico's and crosses her arms. "I mean, not to, like, freak you out or anything, but I've liked you for a really long time. And I've kind of…," she stalls and cuts her eyes to the side, avoiding Nico's, "dreamt about this, _us_ , for a long time." She turns away from Nico and takes the few steps to the edge of the cliff, looking out over the valley below them. "So I have to be confident. Because if this doesn't work, if _we_ don't work… I'll be devastated."

 

Nico steps up to Karolina's side, places one hand on her hip and the other on her arm as she presses a kiss to the back of her shoulder.

 

"You're not the only one that would be devastated, ya know," she echoes back. Karolina smiles and bows her head. "I know I might not have wanted this for as long as you. And I don't think I ever really understood how scary that was for you." Nico tugs on Karolina's arm until she finally turns to face her.

 

"But you should know, that night at the dance," Nico pauses for a moment to try and find the right words. "Before that night it was like when you're in a dark room, and you can see shadows and shapes and you think you know what everything is. But then the light comes on and nothing is what you thought it was. But everything you see in the light, you know that it's _real_." Karolina smiles and reaches out to brush a strand of Nico's hair from her eyes.

 

"You kissed me," Nico starts again with a smile of her own at the memory, "and it was like suddenly all the lights were on, and I could really see. You're my light in the dark, Karolina."

 

Karolina leans forward then and kisses her. It's sweet and gentle and full of those three words neither of them has quite been able to say, but that inch closer to the tip of Nico's tongue every time she opens her mouth around the other girl.

 

"Who knew all this time that you were such a secret sap, Nico Minoru." Karolina grins and pecks her lips again.

 

"Yeah, no one gets to know that but you. And if you tell anyone I'll deny it to my grave." Karolina laughs and slides her arms around Nico's neck for a hug. "Now come on," Nico pulls away and grabs Karolina's hand to start pulling her back in the house, "you have to help me clean cereal out of Chase's pants."

 

"Um, what?" Karolina asks as she follows behind her girlfriend.

 

"It's a long story."


End file.
